Fish in a Ditch

(this was submitted as a ‘letter to the editor’ of Langley Advance News, Jan.’98 by Doug McFee, member of Salmon River Enhancement Society)

I have followed with interest recent stories about the Department of Fisheries trying to limit ditch cleaning in Abbotsford and the controversy this has caused.

If one looks at a detailed map of Langley, one will see many of the small tributaries of the local rivers have been interrupted or replaced by ditches.

These ditches are often created as drainage projects for farming or as a result of road building. While these tributaries are small and may seem insignificant, it is also true that it is precisely these small streams that are preferred by coho for spawning.

The health of the Salmon River system (the Salmon River is the most productive river in the Lower Fraser Valley for coho) depends on a relatively limited number of small tributaries that the coho use to spawn.

Doug McFee shows some juvenile chinook and year old coho salmon which he collected from the river near Fort Langley on april 14 /99

These streams are often small enough most of the year that they can easily be crossed with one step; however, in the heavy rains of November and December, the water flow is much greater. This is when the coho make their rush up the river as they sense the increased flow that will allow them to force their way up these small streams and spawn.

The high water makes it difficult to see the coho in the river, although at this time of year they may be seen at the new fish trap run by DFO at Glover Road and Rawlinson Cres., or one may see them after a rain, jumping below the bridge on 64^th Ave. at Williams Park just east of 232^nd St.

The coho’s young then spend a full year in these small streams before migrating out to the ocean.

Coho are very creative, and even work their way into areas that have been replaced by drainage ditches. In fact, one of the best places to see spawning coho in the Nicomekl system of Langley is the drainage ditch on the east side of 232^nd St., immediately north of Tall Timbers Golf Course.

Even if there are no coho in a ditch, the maintenance of the ditch at this time of year produces large quantities of mud and silt which may cover the spawning sites in the stream that the ditch eventually enters, thus destroying that year’s coho. A mistake in any one year will affect the fishery for many years down the road, as fewer fish this year will result in a drop of production every fourth year for a number of cycles.

To its credit, Langley Township has had some discussions about a ditch maintenance policy which would seek to perform ditch-clearing earlier in the year so that there is minimal impact on fish.

The Fraser River has been named B.C.'s most endangered river for the first time in nine years because of a range of threats that includes overfishing, climate change, gravel extraction, and sewage.

Mark Angelo, rivers chair for the Outdoor Recreation Council, warned that the Fraser River -- "the heart and soul of our province" -- has "taken a turn for the worse" after several years of progress.

The council's annual top-10 list of B.C. endangered rivers released today rates the Taku River in northwest B.C. as number two after the Fraser River.

That's followed by the Georgia basin steelhead streams, the Nicola and Coldwater rivers near Merritt, the Chilliwack and Vedder rivers, the Coquitlam River, the Okanagan River, the Kettle River near Grand Forks, the Salmon River in Fort Langley, and, in a tie for 10th spot, the Goat River near McBride and Iskut River in northwest B.C.

The range of threats to B.C.'s rivers include industrial development such as mining, logging, and hydro power projects; residential development; pollutants such as human sewage and agriculture manure; water extraction for irrigation; siltation, and overfishing.

Angelo, who heads the fish, wildlife and recreation program at the B.C. Institute of Technology and has received the Order of Canada for his work saving rivers, said in an interview that all levels of government must share responsibility for the worsening state of B.C.'s greatest salmon river.

He called on the Greater Vancouver Regional District to push ahead quickly with upgrading its Lions Gate and Iona sewage plants to secondary treatment, the provincial government to get tough with unlawful spreading and storage of agricultural manures, and the federal government to step up enforcement of illegal fishing and to take a cautionary approach to salmon management, given the uncertainty of climate change and warmer waters limiting spawning success.

Angelo also said he is concerned that a federal-provincial agreement signed last year to reduce flood risk allows for gravel extraction at an unsustainable rate between Hope and Mission, noting up to nine million pink salmon spawn in the main stem of the river.

He argued the planned extraction of 500,000 cubic metres of gravel this year and 2.26 million over five years amounts to two to four times the amount of gravel the Fraser River naturally deposits into the Fraser Valley every year.

Angelo also called on the B.C. Liberal government to live up to its long-standing promise to create a Living Rivers initiative, including the release of an annual state-of-rivers report, and recommended that a special land-use plan be adopted for the environmentally sensitive lower Fraser.

David Marshall, executive director of the Fraser Basin Council, a group of government and non-government stakeholders seeking sustainable solutions to the Fraser's problems, said he agreed with Angelo's assertion that "more needs to be done."

But Marshall views the gravel extraction agreement as a positive step, supported by first nations. He noted that a moratorium on gravel removal for the past five years has created a buildup of gravels that pose a flood threat.

"There will be monitoring plans put in place," he said of the extraction.

"It doesn't mean irresponsible gravel management."

The 13th annual list of most endangered rivers is based on nominations from the council's 120,000 members as well as government managers and the general public.

RUNNING AWAY?:

B.C.'s 10 most endangered rivers, according to an updated annual list issued by the Outdoor Recreation Council:

1. Fraser

2. Taku

3. Greater Georgia Basin steelhead streams

4. Nicola and Coldwater rivers

5. Chilliwack and Vedder rivers

6. Coquitlam

7. Okanagan

8. Kettle

9. Salmon

10. A tie between the Goat River and the Iskut River